Why Leeds New Muslims (LNM)?
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“Let there arise a group who invite others to a good path”
It is a divine command and one which the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)
never ceased to give his utmost effort and concern. The Prophet (pbuh) clearly
realised that the most effective way to spread and inform people of the message
of Islam was through “people of their own tribe (i.e. a local person who knew
the cultural norms of his society). This group of people, by the nature of
Islam’s universal appeal, will never be exclusively English alone but will
include other useful members who support the aim of inviting the local
population in a sympathetic and understanding manner.
Our experiences have shown that there is a steady flow of people interested in
Islam, who with guidance will embrace Islam. The LNM may be regarded as only a
catalyst in a person embracing Islam. One aspect that has concerned us is some
people after embracing Islam, slowly lose contact with the mosque and the Muslim
community. In order to reverse this we try to provide social gatherings together
with an element of learning the general principles and concepts of Islam.
At present, all activities are held in public halls and rented rooms. Since we
do not have a premises to cater for our events, we believe that a useful step
would be to acquire a property in which we could have more opportunity and
flexibility with our programs. LNM is an organisation run mainly by
indigenous Muslims. We strive to support new Muslims, and anyone who maybe
interested in learning more about Islam.
Many working in the organisation are English born and therefore of the
indigenous culture, but at the same time are well acquainted with the local
Muslim community. As a result they are familiar with both English and Muslim
sensitivities. This means we are in a unique position during these particularly
strained times to bring mutual understanding between the local Muslim and the
wider communities of Leeds. Islam is the glue that binds this community.
Evidence of this can be seen by the fact that we are from many cultures, colours
and backgrounds. Where most communities are monolithic (i.e. Kurdish, Pakistani
etc) this community is unique in its variety. English, Moroccan, Kurdish,
French, South African, Indian, Guyanese, Gambian, Irish, West Indian, Polish,
American, Canadian and many more.
A second unique character is that we aim to cater for families (we are not a
men only group). We see the family as the living heart of a Muslim community. A
third unique character is that, the community is more in touch with the wider
non-Muslim community (Christian majority). The fact that many are indigenous
people, makes interaction with the wider non-muslim community much easier. |
